Local Production Networks of SMEs: The Future of Producing Locally?

Abstract

In the discussions of Fab Cities, “local production” and “urban production” are recurring topics. While one goal is bringing production back to the cities, there are already companies that have been producing there – sometimes for decades. These are typically micro, small and medium-sized enterprises (SME) specialized in certain crafts or trades. In order to create products, such as furniture or even entire houses, they often have to collaborate so that multiple producers contribute their craft and expertise to an end product. Businesses typically have partners from other trades whom they regularly work with, but there is rarely a true network dynamic. Collaborating in a network could, however, provide significant advantages to producers and customers, especially when supported further by utilizing state-of-the-art information technologies to optimize network processes. However, due to a lack of resources SMEs in particular have been having a hard time adopting technologies introduced by Industry 4.0 and designed to enable more effective collaboration. Additionally, existing concepts for production networks of SMEs have not been as successful as anticipated. Therefore, this chapter aims to explore the challenges and potential of production networks of local SMEs as well as ways to support them.